"Azog saw that all his host in the valley was in a rout, and the dwarves went this way and that slaying as they would, and those orcs that could escape from them were flying south, shrieking as they ran. And hard by all the soldiers of his guard lay dead. He turned and fled back towards the gate.

Up the steps after him leaped a dwarf with a red axe. It was Dain Ironfoot, a son of Nain who fell a moment earlier. Right before the doors he caught Azog, and there he slew him, and hewed off his head. That was held a great feat, for Dain was then only a stripling in the reckoning of the dwarves. But long life and many battles lay before him, until old but unbowed he fell at last in the War of the Ring.

When at last the battle was won, the dwarves that were left gathered in Azanulbizar. They took the head of Azog and thrust into its mouth the purse of small money, and then they set it on a stake. But no feast nor song was there that night; for their dead were beyond the count of grief."____________________Pen, drawing ink and graphite pencil work. There'll be one more illustration in this serie.

Dang blast and curses but this drawing is epic. And epic in the true meaning of the word. Not the undermined overused term the children like to use. It stirs up both respect and envy in me. I thank you.

Thank you very much for your words, sir. I could say the same about your digital portraits and character illustrations - traditional drawing ink & graphite pencil are more or less familiar to me, but tablet and digital painting simply drive me crazy.

Thank you, although I have to admit that I'm not familiar with this kind of features. It took me some time to realize what was happening, as comments kept flooding my inbox...

By the way, my best wishes to Tolkien group's donation project! This part of DA is unfamiliar as well, as I gave you some points that I had received some time ago (there're no better place for them, I say!)... although there was a donation box in your front page which I spotted too late. I don't know how much those points are in real currency - not too much I fear!